Accused of murder in London, Ontario, Muslim family says in video played during trial he knows ‘100%’ why he was arrested
Warning: This story contains disturbing details.
Less than an hour after a car hit a Muslim family on a street in London, Ontario, on June 6, 2021, Nathaniel Feltman was brought into police headquarters and asked by a booking sergeant if he understood why he was being arrested. The booking sergeant asked him: “100 percent.”
That’s one of the scenes from video footage taken at London police headquarters, which was played at the 22-year-old’s murder and terrorism trial on Wednesday in Ontario Superior Court in Windsor.
Yamna Afzal, 15, her parents, Madiha Salman, 44, and Salman Afzal, 46, and the mother of the family, Talaat Afzal, 74, were killed in the attack that occurred while they were out for an evening walk. A young boy who was nine years old at the time survived.
Feltman, who is charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder along with terrorism-related offenses, has pleaded not guilty.
In police video footage seen by the jury and others in court, Feltman is shown answering officers’ questions. He stands on a red
After a custody sergeant asked him if he had any enemies in prison, he replied, “After what I did, obviously I’m going to have enemies.”
During the custodial interview, the defendant also answers questions about his or her allergies and whether he or she has consumed alcohol or used drugs in the past 24 hours. He answers “no” to both questions, and also says he took “mushrooms” on Saturday morning. He says he had previously been arrested for public drunkenness and had contemplated suicide in the past, but did not want to harm himself.
Witness was on the balcony when she heard the engine revving
Earlier on Wednesday, the court heard from Lindsay Marshall, 36, who testified that she was reading on her fifth-floor balcony near Hyde Park Road in London on June 6, 2021, when the loud sound of an engine revving forced her to look up.
“I saw a black pickup truck driving south on Hyde Park Road, and I saw it speed up, go through the intersection, drive up the sidewalk, and I thought it hit a sign or something like that on that sidewalk,” she said.
“I saw something fly 30 or 40 feet (about 9 to 12 metres), and the truck continued on Hyde Park Road.”
During cross-examination by prosecutor Jennifer Moser, Marshall testified: “After the black pickup truck continued to head south, the other northbound cars started to stop and I just kind of sat there. I didn’t know what I just saw. I saw people getting out.” “Then I heard a lot of sirens a few minutes later.”
Marshall said she didn’t realize the police officer was rushing in and starting CPR until she realized it was someone she saw being beaten.
“When I saw the officer helping someone, I thought only one person was hurt, and then I could see other people in the southwest corner gathering around what I thought was a person, and then people taking care of this fellow.”
She added that Marshall stood in shock for about an hour trying to comprehend what she saw, before she went downstairs to give a statement to the police. “I think I just saw a hit and run,” she texted family members.
Agreed facts are indisputable
Eller In the trial, which began with jury selection last week and formally began proceedings Monday, the Crown and defense lawyers agreed on a number of facts that would not be discussed. She added that the accused drove a black Dodge Ram pickup truck to the Afzal family and beat all five of its members. Data from the truck shows he headed toward the family five seconds before the collision with the accelerator pedal at 100 percent.
After the crash, he drove erratically towards Cherryhill Shopping Centre, where he parked in the car park and approached a taxi driver waiting for calls, the court heard.
In the murder trial of a man accused of running over four members of a Muslim family in London, Ontario, with his truck, the courtroom heard testimony from a taxi driver who approached him after the attack, the subsequent 911 call and a video of the man. Man arrested.
On Tuesday, the jury watched a video of the pickup truck turning into the mall parking lot and the defendant approaching the taxi driver, who testified that he called 911 after the pickup driver told him to “call the cops.”
The jury also heard the 911 call made by the taxi driver. During the phone call, the defendant can be heard saying: “It was me. It was me who did it. It was me who ran into those people,” before telling the dispatcher: “I did it on purpose.”
The officers came and arrested him.
Before it could begin, the trial was moved to Windsor, with the venue changed due to a publication ban.
The proceedings continue on Thursday.
